Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars “The point is, there is no point. Choose your own.” As the last book in Anne Leckie’s Imperial Radch Trilogy, Ancillary Mercy (2015) begins, her first-person narrator/protagonist Breq (a former sentient troop transport ship now a Fleetship Captain limited to a single “human” body) has just about recovered from a shoulder injury suffered a few days ago when, in the climax of the second novel, Ancillary Sword (2014), she was almost killed. Breq’s implants enable her to access the thoughts and perceptions of her warship Mercy of Kalr, who simultaneously monitors all its human crew members (“I could see what the ship saw”) as well as those of the friendly Athoek space station. Whenever she wants, Breq can observe the actions and words and moods of her crew, like her Lieutenants, Tisarwat (a seventeen-year-old violet-eyed “baby” Lieutenant), Ekalu (an up from the ranks officer), and Seivarden (an officer from Breq’s transport ship days still in love with her). When you factor in Breq’s keen observation, cool wisdom, and accurate insights into human nature gained by over two thousand years dealing with people, she is basically a first-person omniscient narrator, able to tell us things like, “Tisarwat knew she had won.” Breq is facing a fraught situation. The far-flung Radch empire is disintegrating, as factions led by (at least) two of the many clones of the three-thousand or so year old Emperor Anaander Mianaai, one of which is bent on ever more expansion, the other on consolidation, have begun a hot civil war, whose effects have reached Athoek—its gate, station, and annexed (i.e., conquered and occupied) planet. Both sides of the conflict want Athoek, and the forces of the worst Emperor clone most enraged at Breq have just captured a palace on a nearish world and are probably sending ships to destroy Breq and Mercy of Kalr and maybe Athoek Station as well. And Breq has to visit Athoek Station to deal with the discovery of an apparently six-hundred-year-old “cousin” ancillary enemy of Anaander Mianaai, as well as with the ineffectual and or hostile Athoek System Governor and the troublesomely entitled Athoek head priest (who wants to move undesirables out of the station and down on the planet to make way for aristo citizens). The civil war has diverted unexpected citizens from other systems to Athoek Station, stretching living space too far. Breq must also visit the planet to witness the interrogation of a citizen who tried to kill the asshole aristocrat who tried to force her to kill Breq in the second novel. The planet is seeing plenty of conflict between tea plantation workers and owners, too (hey, the Radch seems to run on tea!). And any number of agents of any number of the Emperor’s clones from any number of her factions may be lurking anywhere around Athoek (station or planet). And the efficiency of two of Breq’s lieutenants is being threatened by their lover’s quarrel. AND another “Translator” representative of the “mysterious and terrifying” alien Presga (whose technology totally supersedes and overpowers anything the Radch have) has just shown up on the scene, with sublime powers, egregious ignorance, and a penchant for fish sauce. A host of problems, then, political, social, cultural, psychological, interpersonal, logistical, and so on, are challenging Breq. Fortunately, her calm intelligence and desire to promote autonomy for all tend to induce AIs, their ancillaries, reasonable people, and even aliens to trust and confide in her. Unfortunately, some people (and maybe some ships) are not in tune with Breq’s agenda, especially not the Emperor of the Radch. Fortunately, Breq is good at thinking up effective plans for any crisis. As one character asks her at one point, “Are you always right about everything?” (view spoiler)[And that is a problem with the novel: the conflict is too easily resolved thanks to Breq’s superior qualities, a Super Gun, and some almost deus ex machina stuff via AIs wanting to be autonomous but really liking their humans so it’s OK and via some super powered aliens that will ensure some of the “bad” humans stay in line. I remember as I got into this novel being at first surprised and then a little disappointed that the whole thing is going to happen at Athoek, like the second novel. The first novel felt more open to possibilities and cultures, the second one introduced a new world of tea plantations, and then this third one just hung around that world of tea plantations. For space opera esque sf, it felt limited. (hide spoiler)] Apart from seeming a little too good to be true, Breq is a neat narrator-protagonist: wise, observant, sensitive, ironic, capable, humane, and given to humming or singing (e.g., “My heart is a fish hiding in the water grass”). In thinking that she’s not human (“I’m an ancillary”) and that no one could love her, while (of course) being intensely human and very likeable, she’s reminiscent of Martha Wells’ Murderbot. Anne Leckie writes some nice SF dialogue, like: “This would probably be a lot easier if we had the right tools.” “Story of my life for the last three thousand years.” And some keen lines, like: “I had learned to be wary whenever a priest suggested that her personal aims were in fact god’s will.” One effective feature of the Ancillary novels is that I usually have no idea what gender the characters are. From hints in the first and/or second novels, Breq is probably female, Seivarden male, but I start forgetting that when for long stretches only female pronouns are used to refer to all characters, and for many like the Eminence, the Station Administrator, the Governor, the various members of Mercy of Kalr’s crew, and so on, I have NO Idea whether they’re male or female or what. It’s a little like how I feel after reading Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness. About the audio book reader: Adjoa Andoh does perfect voices for the main characters like Brett and Seiverden and and Tisarwat and Mercy and Station and Sword etc. But she tends to overdo the unpleasant characters like the Emperor and the head priest, so that their high pitched, inane, hysterical voices become excruciating to listen to, which may be the point, but which is overkill given the already plenty unpleasant qualities that Leckie gives them in her text. I loved the first book, liked the second, and was finally disappointed by this third one. View all my reviews
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